Stroboscope device for determining



March 4, 1947. TURRETTlN] 2,416,968 A STROBOSCOPIC DEVICE FOR DETERMINING ELECTRICALLY THE POSITION OF AN OBJECT Filed May 25, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet l March4,1947. H mm 2,416,968

STROBOSCOPIC DEVIE F T- INING ELECTRICALLY THE POSIT OF OBJECT v Filed 25, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Twrrebbi/zz/zl Fatented Mar. 4,, 1947 STROBOSCOPIC DEVICE FOR DETERMINING ELECTRICALLY THE POSITIONS OF OB- J ECTS Fernand Turrettini, Geneva, Switzerland, as-

signor to Societe Genevoise DInstruments De Physique, Geneva, Switzerland, a firm of Switzerland I Application May 25, 1944, Serial No. 537,320

In Switzerland June 21, 1943 3 Claims. (Cl. 250-41.5)

The present invention relates to improvements in stroboscopic devices for determining electrically the position of an object, and more particularly in a device of the kind which was the object of the prior application, Serial No. 445,924, filed June 5, 1942. This prior device comprised an objective facing the object, a deflector mounted for oscillating movement behind that objective, a synchronous oscillator maintaining the oscillations of the deflector, a grid interposed after the deflector, a photoelectric cell placed behind the grid, a relay amplifier connected to this cell, an instantaneous flash lamp connected with this amplifier, and an observation member carrying at least one index and one mark, said member being lighted by aid lamp and driven by a synchronou motor, so that the flux of light resulting .from the image of the object to be positioned, projected by the objective and oscillating owing to the deflector, was coming to coincide periodically with the slit of the grid and to strike the cell, whose amplified reaction caused the lamp to throw flashes of light on the observation member, the index of the latter appearing, in relation to the mark, in variable position reproducing 'greatly enlarged the variation of position of the object in relation tothe axis ofthe optical sysitem.

This device gives very satisfactory. results with respect to precision,.but it possesses the inconvenience of enabling to determine the. position of an object within narrow limits only, the latter depending from the magnification of the device and being inversely proportional to it.

The magnification is the ratio between the circumferential speed of a rotary index together with a rotary observation scale and the linear speed of oscillation of the image on the grid.

As this device is destinated for metrological work in which the micron (0.001 mm.) is the current unit of measure, and which should permit to easily observe the microns with the naked eye, as well as to readily estimate the tenths of micron on the observation scale, it is clear that the magnification should be at least of the order of thousand to one, so that the device may render the services expected. v

The dimensions and the speed of rotation o the rotary disc which bears the index and the observation scale, as well as the intensity of illumination'produced by the instantaneous flash lamp, being limited for reasons of a construe tional nature. it follows that, in order to obtain a high magnification, the linear speed of oscilla tion of the image on the grid has to'be very small. This also applies to the amplitude of the oscillating movement which should possess a frequency of at least twenty per second in order that the retinal persistance of the observer furnishes him the impression of a continuous illumination.

Practically, the amplitude of the oscillating movement of the image on the grid cannot exceed some hundredths of a millimetre, if the device has to possess a magnification of thousand to one.

Thus, it is not possible to use the device according to the above mentioned application in order to determine the position of an object bearing a millimetric graduation by viewing,,by means of the optical system of the device, any given point within a millimetric interval, as the image of the division cannot oscillate on the grid with an. amplitude of a millimetre if a high degree of magnification is required.

It is an object of the present invention to eliminate the inconveniences mentioned above and to provide an improved device for determining electrically the position of an object comprising at least one graduation, enabling to carry out measurements at any given point of an interval, for example a millimetre, and obtain at. the same time a high magnification.

Other bjects will appear from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a schematic view of a first embodiment of the device.

Fig. 2 is a part view of a second embodiment of the device. I

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic explanation of a detail.

Fig. 4 shows an alternative of a detail.

In the embodiment according to Fig. l, the graduated scale serving to determine the position of the object is shown in I, this scale comprises a millimetric graduation ,2. The image of the graduation is proj'ecte d by the objective 3, through the vibrating adjacent deflectors 4a and 4b facing each half of the objective 3, on to 'a' screen 9 comprising a row oi slots 91;, the distance between said slots corresponding for example to an interval of 0.05 mm. and a second row of slots 9b spaced to correspond'to an interval of 1 mm.

of the graduation 2. 'The deflector 4b oscillates about the axis1A B with such an amplitude that the total length of the graduation 19b corresponds exactly to an interval of 1 mmon the It would be diflicult to maintain of a thick, andcon'sequently heavy plate, with i a high amplitude without 'such' vibration being transmitted to the whole device.

the total length of the graduation l9a corre-' sponds exactly to an interval of 0.05 mm. onthe scale l. Behind the rows of slots 9a and 9b are arranged the photo-electric cells Mia and IN). The latter are connected to the amplifiers Va and Vb which operate the relays Ra and Rb feeding the flash lamps La and Lb from the net. The latter feed. simultaneously the coils Sa, Sb of the oscillating deflectors la, 4b, as well as the synchronous motor M driving the observation disc I3.

The, electrical circuit causes the illumination of the observation scales Na and Nb carried by the rotary disc l3, which also comprises the in-' dexes Ma and lb. The graduation 19a, on which will appear the index 411 according to the position of the object, is the graduation with a high magnification; it comprises a scale with fifty intervals, each corresponding to one micron. The graduation I91), on which will appear the index Mb. according to the position of the object, is the graduation with a, low magnification, its total length represents one millimetre and is subdivided into twenty intervals, each corresponding to 0.05 mm.

Millimetric divisions have been mentioned in order to give a general idea, the device may be applied to any other system with a difierentv length unit, for example fractions of an inch;

The operation of the device is as follows:

The graduation of the object may be simul- 7 c and consequently, an angle u-l-p with the lines This deflector must produce taneously observed magnified at two different ratios. When the object moves to theainount of one millimetre, for example, one of the indexes moves over the whole low-magnification graduation, Whereas the other index moves twenty times over the Whole length of the graduation with high magnification.

Thus, it will be possible'to make observations from micron to micron without discontinuity within the interval of a millimetre, completing the indications on the second'graduation by means of those given by thefirst one. In order to ascertain the efficient working of the cell arranged behind the series of slots'spaced at 0.05 'mm., of which only onein twenty may simultaneouslyv coincide with the image of the millimetric graduatiomjthe'latter may b ormed i for example by luminous lines on 'adark ground.

If the position of the object is such that When I working,'the index Hla appears in Ma and the index Mb in Mb, the total reading on both graduations will be0.384 mm. (0;35+0.034).

The glass plate, forming the oscillating de-" fleotor ib, must necessarily be'much thicker and carry out a vibration of a greater amplitude than that of the deflector 4a, in order to cause on the grid 9b a displacement of the image fifty times larger than on the grid 9a.

the vibration V The embodiment accordinglt'o Fig. 2 eliminates this inconvenience and enables to make use of a single defiector'only, carrying out small vibratory movements in a given direction, This is being made possible by employing an expedient when tracing the graduation 2. It consists in I tracing on the rule Itwograduations, the lines of which form aidistinctangle', according to 1 3, when the graduation 2 a represents for example a millimetric graduation and the gradua- 3 tion 22) a slanting graduation, the lines of which 1 form an angle a with the-line s of the'firstgradu- '4'" ation 2a. The

and are therefore much narrower than the in-. tervals I. Both graduations, showing the same longitudinal pitch, characterize millimetric intervals.

One single deflector 4, vibrating about an axis arranged in such a Way that it moves the image in the direction A-A ,'may then be used. This direction forms with the lines 2a, Za, 2"a an angle 2b, Z'b, 2"b, etc. the oscillation of the image'with' an amplitude A. If it is required that on the graduation 2b, the

amplitude A of the oscillation be equal to the interval between the lines 21), Zb, 2"b, measured in the direction A- A, we obtain:

I.cos a Sin +B) If, on the other hand, the amplitude A of the oscillation has to cause a lateral displacement of 93:0.05 mm. of the image of the lines 211, Z'a, 2"a, V

we have: r

' These two equations permit to compute the angle 13 in function" of a in the desired effect on the two grids 9a and 9b of Fig. 2, which correspond to the arrangement of the graduations 2a 7 electrically the position of an object carrying at least one graduation, the lines of. the graduation lying at an angle to its direction of *motion, said device comprisingan objectivefacing the graduation, at least one optical deflector arranged to oscillate continuously, behind said objective, a synchronousoscillator maintaining the oscilla tions of the deflectors, a'screen showing atlleast two series of slots with different pitches on which theimage of the graduationiscontinuously moving, said screen being a'rranged'behind the defiector, and a photoelectric cell arranged'behind each series of'slots, withanamplifier and a relay connected to each -cell,"-in. -combination, an instantaneous flash lampjconnected to eachrelay and a-stroboscopic observation disk carrying at least twoindexes and two graduations, said indexes being diametrically opposed to theygradm ations, said disk being illuminated bysaidjfiash lamps and driven by a synchronous motorgfor reproducing attwo different ratios ofimagnifica' tion the variations of the position 'ofthe object in relation to the axis of the objective. f; p

"2. In a stroboscopic devicejas claimed injclaim 1, wherein the object carries two graduationswith the same longitudinal pitch,.in'icombin'ation, the

fact that the lines of one graduationiorm an angle withthose of the other graduation,gthe

screen having two serie's of slots forming between: them the same angle as the lines o f'the g'raduations of the object, and theamplitude o'fthe;

intervals I of the gradu ation 2b are equal to the intervals I of the gradu-' ation 2a multiplied by the cosine of the angle 0:

5 6 oscillation of the deflector moving the image of the two graduations on both series of slots of the REFERENCES CITED screen in an alternating motion the amplitude of The following references are oi record in the Which corresponds to the spacing between the file of this patent;

slots measured in'the direction of the motion of 5 the image UNITED STATES PATENTS 3. In a stroboscopic device as claimed in claim Number Name a 1, in combination, the fact that the object carries 2 375, 5 Koulicovitch May 3 5 at least one graduation consisting of luminous lines on a dark ground. 10 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date FERNAND TURRETTINI. 619,153 German Sept. 2-3, 1935 

